THE ELINGAMITE INQUIRY.

Grey River Argus, Volume LVII, Issue 10520, 29 January 1903, Page 4

THE ELINGAMITE INQUIRY.

(To the Editor.) Sir, — In your leader re the Elingamitfj enquiry, T note you state that the Court was baffle! by the evidence of the engineers. I don't know wha'c is meant by being "baffled", unless it was intended to pufc the blame on the engineers and you find no grounds fo- .doing m. As far as I can remember ju reading the evidence of the surviving engineers, th*y all stu,ed that there was nothing th« matter with the engi-es and that the reason why thn vessel <iid net go aste a was that the propeller must have i*en jammed. 'Of coiirso, if the propeller had been by coming in com act with l^ofitS^t,. wou d net only have beeH jj^St in(?jbie^gi«e room, but all over »s it is stated in the they tried to ie verse the

engines before the vessel struck anything it is more than likely that the | propeller got jammed with kelp. I had an experience of Ethis myself some years ago. I was chief engineer of the Star of the South. We were on our voyage from Lyttelton to Greymouth, and in passing Cape Campbell one dark nighfe — the sea was very calm, scarcely a ripple to be seen — when just abreast of the light the engines were brought up standing and would not move. I then reversed the engines to try them, but failed, as they would nob move. There was a great commetion on deck in censequeHCG, and the cap t ain called down the engine room " For God's sake start the engines, as we are amongst the rocks." But with steam on the engines would not go either ahead or astern. I then ordered the turning gear to be shipped. We could then move the engines. After making half a revolution we unshipped the turning gear and gave her the steam. The engines then got away and we could feel the propeler cutiag its wa^threugh the kelp. We then managed to get cle«r of the rocks without touching any. It is quite therefore possible the engines propeller when stopping gob fowled with kelp, being in close proximity to the rocks. As 'or the wedge being in, there is nothing in this, as any expert knows that it is sometimes pub in to take up the slack of pins and would fall out whea the engine was reversed. — I am, etc., J. Hambleton, Manager Dispatch Foundry.